


dissonance in stability

by amaanogawa



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Fluff, M/M, OfficeWorker!Daichi, punk!Kuroo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-14
Updated: 2016-10-14
Packaged: 2018-08-22 07:39:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8277994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amaanogawa/pseuds/amaanogawa
Summary: dis·so·nance/ˈdisənəns/noun· a tension or clash resulting from the combination of two disharmonious or unsuitable elements.OR"It's absolutely ridiculous, really, two grown men lying on an elevator floor, chewing bubble gum side by side at 5 in the morning. Daichi would never have thought that he'd be here, doing something so unbelievable.And yet, here he was."





	

Most people associate Daichi with the word _stability_.

It's true, after all, that Daichi has always been firm in his ways. He likes it like that, likes when his day goes according to routine. He likes knowing that things will go the way that they're supposed to go, likes that when people come to him for help they don't ever doubt he'll bring resolution in a way that seems almost second nature. For Daichi, _stability_ means _foundation_ means _trust_.

And so when Asahi comes to him two minutes before he's to get off work, panic in his eyes and a waterfall of words pouring from his mouth that Daichi can only just comprehend, his first reaction is acceptance. Sure, he had been anticipating going _home_ and having some dinner and taking a hot bath and maybe cracking a beer while watching a cheesy sci-fi movie on his couch. Sure, he's already worked way past his obligatory forty hours a week and sure, there's _still_ no pay raise in sight. But it's for Asahi after all, so Daichi accepts that he'll likely be here until well past midnight working to fix whatever blunder Asahi doesn't have the clearance or training to fix himself.

\---

It's 12:53am by the time Daichi shrugs his suit jacket on and picks up his bag to leave the deserted office building. He had long sent Asahi home, partially because there wasn't much he could do anyways and partially because the guilty look he kept shooting Daichi was starting to wear thin on Daichi's nerves. As Daichi heads towards the elevators, he rolls each of his shoulders to relieve some of the tension building there over the hours he spent hunched over the bright computer monitor and paper work fanned out across the desk. The building is eerily quiet at this time, considering no one in their right mind would stay this late doing uncompensated overtime. Those people are the smart ones, probably snug in their beds getting some well deserved sleep for the night.

Daichi is not one of those smart people.

The elevator finally reaches the 12th floor where Daichi is waiting a tad impatiently, and as he steps through the doors and presses M for main floor, he's thinking about whether he wants to ignore the grumbling in his stomach and collapse into bed, because food can wait when you're this god damned exhausted. As the elevator doors slide shut, he's thinking that maybe he would want to grab a quick meal from the convenience store on the way home, because at the very least you deserve a hearty meal at the end of a long day.

Suddenly, a booted foot jams itself between the thick metal doors and a surprised yelp may or may not accidentally tumble from Daichi's lips because _what the fuck there was someone here with him this entire time_ \- but the doors open again and turns out it's not a serial killer or an angry spirit haunting the office building. It's just a guy.

Whether or not the guy is _super fucking attractive_ is beyond Daichi's thought process.

His breathing is a bit laboured, probably from running down the hall to catch the elevator, and he shoots Daichi a relieved smile before getting on. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

A blush blooms high on Daichi's cheeks and he doesn't respond to the smile; instead, he fiddles with his phone because he needs something to prove to the stranger that he is absolutely _not_ stealing peeks at him as they descend together.

(The truth: he is _definitely_ stealing peeks at him as they descend together.)

The stranger may as well be the complete opposite of Daichi, really, all long legs clad in ripped, black skinny jeans, clunky combat boots and black nail polish on each finger. He was tall enough that Daichi would probably have to tilt his head up to look him in the face, with ridiculous wild hair sticking up every which way; not in an overly-gelled way, either, but possibly some extreme case of bedhead. He sported a black t-shirt with a symbol on it that Daichi didn't recognize, maybe an obscure band logo, and a red and black checkered flannel is tied around his waist. There are two silver studs above and below his eyebrow that make Daichi's throat go dry.

Daichi considers himself: simple, presentable, suit and tie with sensible dress shoes. Someone who wouldn't look questionable staying in an office building until one in the morning. Suddenly nervous, Daichi considers the fact that he was currently sharing an elevator with someone who definitely _does_ look questionable staying in an office building until one in the morning. Sliding his eyes to the side, he attempts to sneak another look at the guy just in case-

Except the guy is staring back at him and Daichi bristles, manages to summon an apprehensive smile as if that might make everything okay. There's a few beats of silence before the guy smiles back, one edge of his mouth higher than the other in a crooked smirk.

"Late night for you too?"

"Y-yea," Daichi says with a nervous chuckle. "Just, y'know. Paperwork."

"Bummer." The guy says, chewing a few times before puckering his lips to blow a large, pink bubble. Daichi stares, because he's fairly sure both of them are around the same age and he hasn't seen someone his age chewing bubble gum in probably-

His thoughts are interrupted when the fluorescent elevator lights start flickering, and Daichi barely has time to look up in confusion before there's a lurching movement that hurls him completely off balance.

"Woah!"

A pair of sturdy arms catch him before he slams onto the floor, and Daichi clings to them out of pure instinct; everything goes dark for a few quiet moments, neither of them moving a muscle, before a hum of what sounds like a generator starts up. A small light built into the center of the elevator ceiling flickers on, but the rest of the fluorescent lights that had been lit up before remain off.

"Shit," the guy says slowly, looking up at the small light. "That was freaky. Hey, you alright?"

Daichi is confused for all of three seconds before he realizes that he's still cradled in the attractive stranger's arms. "Oh!" He says, way too loudly, untangling himself and taking two large steps backwards. "Sorry, I'm fine. Thanks."

The pair of them look around the now dimly lit elevator.

"We're not moving." Daichi blanches. The attractive stranger walks over to the wall of buttons and taps the M button a few times, but nothing happens. Scrunching his brows together, he then decisively presses the red button with an image of a bell on it, next to a small plaque that reads 'press for assistance'. The small speaker emits a shrill ringing sound that makes Daichi wince, echoing into the elevator. It rings. And rings.

...and rings.

"What the hell?" The man whispers under his breath, stabbing at the button a few more times. "Does this building not have security?"

"Uh, it does." Daichi says, thinking out loud. "But the main doors automatically lock from the outside after 9, and no one usually stays past then either. I'm pretty sure security goes home after that."

"You kidding me?" The man says, looking up wide eyed at Daichi. "What the hell are we supposed to do?"

Daichi pulls out his phone and pales when he sees _No Service_ in the top left corner. "Shit. I don't have any service in here, what about you?"

The stranger reaches into his back pocket and it takes a few tries to pluck his phone out due to how _damn tight_ his skinny jeans are, but once he manages he tries, futilely, to turn it on. Clicking his tongue, he holds the phone up in obvious defeat. "My phone's dead."

There's a moment of tense silence as the pair stand there in the darkened elevator, the weight of the situation slowly sinking in. The elevator is broken, there's no one in the building to help them, and both their phones are useless.

"Is there anyone that would notice you're gone?" Daichi asks, mouth curved into a grimace.

"No one that would come looking for me if I didn't answer a text or two." The man says, shrugging his shoulders weakly. "You? Wouldn't your wife notice if you didn't come home?"

"Wi-?" Daichi stammers, taken aback. "I'm not married."

"Oh. Girlfriend?"

"No."

"Boyfriend?"

"No."

"A fuck buddy waiting for your call?"

"Wha- no!"

The man sighs, reaching up to rub at his face tiredly before crouching down to sit on his haunches. "Damnit. Don't tell me we're actually trapped in here until the morning."

Daichi crosses his arms across his chest and considers. It's 1am. People don't start to arrive at work until around 8:45am. They'd be stuck in here for nearly 8 hours before they'd be found. He lets out a groan, shrugs his suit jacket off and leans against the elevator wall, cursing Asahi in his mind.

"Well," the man says, flopping back onto his ass and propping himself up with both arms behind him, "at least I went to the washroom before I left the office."

At this, Daichi swallows nervously. How long had it been since he went to the washroom? He was perfectly fine up until that single moment but suddenly the urge is there and Daichi breathes a swear under his breath. The man looks up from his spot on the floor with a sly smirk on his face.

"Uh oh. Someone wasn't as smart, huh?"

"Shut up." Daichi hisses, crouching down to the floor. He buries his face in his hands and tries to think about anything that could deter the feeling. The Sahara desert. Sand. Dry, cracked earth.

"You are not pissing in this elevator. Not if I have to stay here for another 8 hours."

"I said, _shut_. _Up_." Daichi seethes this time, squeezing his eyes shut and committing to his imagery.

"Oh, wait!" The man shouts, turning around to rummage through his backpack. With a cry of triumph, he unearths an empty water bottle and chucks it at Daichi, wicked grin in place. "Aha! There, you can use that if you're really desperate."

Daichi swats the bottle away, brow raised, and it rolls uselessly over to the corner of the elevator. "I am _fine_. Thank you very much."

The man shrugs, smile wry and bemused, before letting out a sigh and leaning back until his head hits the wall behind him with a dull thunk. "Well, guess I won't be catching that nature documentary I wanted to watch."

Daichi settles in, loosens his tie with the hook of a finger, stretches his legs out. 8 hours trapped in an elevator with a hot stranger. He could just imagine what Suga would have to say about that if he could call him, could picture Suga's smile turn devilish, that twinkle in his eye that spelled trouble through and through. Speaking of which, that's still all he knows his companion as, _the hot stranger_. Daichi looks up and bristles slightly when he finds the man's eyes on him, a sultry look on his face. His eyes widen when Daichi meets his gaze and he gives Daichi an awkward smile.

"Hey, what's your name?" Daichi ends up asking, hoping that the dim lighting might make his burning cheeks hard to see.

The stranger raises his brows, presses a hand to his cheek in mock alarm. "My goodness, how rude of me!" He says dramatically, "I'm Kuroo Tetsurou. And you are?"

"Sawamura." Daichi says, curt. He isn't sure why he stops there, usually he could care less about whether people use his first name or his last. But there's something about Kuroo, something about the sly curve to his grins, his ridiculous style ill befitting of their age, the teasing tenor of his voice that pokes at Daichi's competitive side. He isn't quite sure whether he wants to compete with him or to make out with him, truth be told.

Both. Maybe both.

"Oh come now, Sawamura-kun. We're stuck-in-elevator buddies, aren't we? I would think we'd be at least on first name basis with each other."

"And you would be wrong." Daichi says simply, readjusting his sitting position. He's exhausted, his back is sore, and he really just wants to fall into bed and sleep for three days straight. But instead he's here, in an elevator with one Kuroo Tetsurou who may or may not ignite some serious sexual frustration in him. And he is definitely not comfortable enough to fall asleep in front of him. So he reaches for his briefcase, pops it open and drags out some paperwork that he had been planning on finishing tomorrow. No time like the present, Daichi thinks with a sigh.

"Sa-wa-mu-raaaaaa," Kuroo calls, pitching his voice. "C'mon, don't tell me you're gonna be boring for all 8 hours we have together."

"We have nothing together." Daichi responds, matter of fact.

"You wound me, Sawamura."

Daichi glances up at Kuroo's face, frustratingly handsome, and tilts his head in thought. "What department are you from, anyway?"

"Ohoho, are you interested?" Kuroo asks with a teasing grin. Daichi stares, unimpressed, before wordlessly returning to his work.

"Kidding, kidding! I'm not a worker here at all. My friend Bokuto, who works here, called me in to fix their servers that suddenly crashed. Said it was a huge emergency and they couldn't find anyone to come so last minute." Kuroo explains with a shrug, blowing another large, pink bubble.

"Bokuto? As in Bokuto Koutarou from advertising?"

"The one and only."

"So you're a technician, or something?"

"Nope. I'm a drummer for a local indie band. I just dabble in computers as a hobby."

"I don't think-" Daichi begins with a frown, "I don't think we're supposed to contract non-professionals for technical matters. It's against the company's policies."

Kuroo laughs, brows knitting together incredulously. "Man, you really gotta lighten up, Sawamura. Are you always this straight laced?"

"I don't think there's anything wrong with adhering to the rules."

"There isn't," Kuroo shrugs. "But don't you get bored? Don't you ever want to just...let loose? Do something impulsive without thinking about the consequences?"

"There's always consequences, Kuroo. That's the thing about being an adult."

Kuroo stares wordlessly at Daichi with a smile on his face, eyes crinkling at the corners softly. It's so different from the faces Daichi's seen up until now that his heart thumps hard in his chest.

"W-what?" Daichi stutters, tongue feeling thick in his mouth.

"You finally used my name. I was starting to think you didn't like me."

"I met you an hour ago. I don't particularly like or dislike you." Daichi lies, cheeks heating up as he avoids Kuroo's eyes. If he were to tell the truth, he's liked Kuroo from the moment his stupid clunky boot jammed itself between the elevator doors, but that's something he'll keep to himself. He returns to his paper work and after a few moments, he hears the rustling of a bag and Kuroo slides a pair of headphones over his ears, clicking through a small iPod before slowly closing his eyes. The elevator goes quiet, the only exception being Daichi's heart pounding in his ears.

\---

Two hours pass like that, Daichi quietly working through his papers, occasionally stealing glances at Kuroo's sleeping face from across their small space. When he's done all the work that he can with the papers that he has, Daichi sits back and lets out a small sigh, rolling his shoulders to alleviate some of the tension. When he looks up, he finds himself drawn back to Kuroo, serene and still, head tilted down just so.

Despite his angular structure, there's a softness in his face, only noticeable now while he isn't cracking his snarky one-liners. Daichi's noticing a lot about Kuroo now, like how his eyelashes fan out over his cheeks, fluttering slightly as he sleeps. He notices a small scar at the height of Kuroo's cheekbone, a light dusting of freckles atop the bridge of Kuroo's nose. The pucker of his lips, pink. Suddenly he stirs, groaning and sitting up straight. Daichi jumps and leans down so that it looks like he's still busying himself with his already completed paperwork.

"Ow ow ow," Kuroo groans, flexing in order to stretch out his back. He slides his headphones down over his neck and winces as he rolls his head in a circle, making his neck crack. "God, everything hurts. What time is it?"

"About 4am," Daichi clarifies, finally calming himself down enough so that he can raise his head, look Kuroo in the eyes. He tidies up his paper work, tapping the stack against the floor of the elevator and sliding a paper clip into place before placing it neatly into his briefcase. "Still got nearly 5 hours to go."

Kuroo groans again, long and drawn out, before turning to the side and flopping down so that he's lying on his back. "Jesus, I'm never going to make it."

"That's dirty, Kuroo." Daichi says, frowning.

Kuroo peers up at Daichi from the floor and Daichi's breath hitches at how provocative Kuroo looks in that moment, all splayed out in front of him, lips parted, bangs falling over his face. He smiles, propping himself back up and scooting over so that he's sitting in front of Daichi, legs crossed, their knees bumping together.

''You really are _so_ proper, Sawamura." Kuroo says, wrinkling his nose. "C'mon, do it. Lay down on the floor with me."

"It's dirty." Daichi says with disgust. "And I'm wearing a nice shirt."

"Sawamuraaaaaa," Kuroo whines, and Daichi thinks that Kuroo has gotten way too comfortable with drawing his name out like that, like they're friends, like they've known each other for ages instead of two strangers who only met because of a silly and very unfortunate mishap. "Just do it! Forget about the shirt!"

"Why do I have to?"

"That's the whole point. You don't _have_ to. Just do it because you _want_ to."

"But I _don't_ want to!" Daichi says, both confused and exasperated.

Kuroo's expression turns deathly serious, and he leans forward to look directly into Daichi's eyes. "Sawamura." He says again, voice low, and Daichi wants to laugh because Kuroo's treating it like the most important thing in the world, like it's a life or death issue instead of simply lying on the stupid floor with stupid Kuroo next to him. Daichi sighs, shrugs weakly.

"Fine."

With the way Kuroo's face lights up, you'd think Daichi had just handed him a hundred bucks. He scoots so that he's sitting in the center of the elevator, looks over at Daichi expectantly and pats the floor beside him. Daichi hesitates, stares at Kuroo's eagerness before shuffling so that he's sitting upright next to Kuroo and gently lowers himself so that his back is flush to the floor. Kuroo follows suit, and then the two of them are laying side by side in the dimness of their broken elevator.

"Well?" Kuroo whispers.

"Well, what?" Daichi whispers back, and he's not quite sure why they're whispering at all, but it feels right in that moment, so he plays along.  
  
"How is it?"

"It's...dusty." Daichi says with a grimace, because he could only imagine how many people have trampled over the floor they're lying on with outdoor shoes that have stepped on god knows what outside in the busy streets. God knows what that is now transferring on to his shirt and pants and the back of his head.

Kuroo lets out a sound of affirmation, and Daichi can feel his head nodding next to him. "Good, good. This is the first step."

"The first step to what, exactly?"

"The 'Make Sawamura Let Loose and Party' plan!" Kuroo declares, throwing his arms up in dramatic flare. He turns his head towards Daichi and grins from ear to ear, and Daichi's eyes widen when he turns to meet Kuroo's eyes because holy shit, their faces are so close to each other-

"T-the what?" Daichi stammers, throat suddenly feeling very dry.

"You heard me."

"We can't party inside a broken elevator, Kuroo." Is all Daichi can think to say.

Kuroo frowns, his lower lip jutting out the tiniest bit in a half pout. "It's just a figure of speech. Don't be such a buzz kill, Sawamura."

"Okay, okay, fine." Daichi rolls his eyes, lifts his hands up in surrender. "What's step two in your great plan?"

Kuroo's face lights up again, and he briefly props himself up to grab his backpack, rifles through it before pulling out some small objects that crinkle as he closes his hand over them. "The next step is...this!"

He turns, reaches his hand out to Daichi, who sits up and stares back suspiciously before offering his upturned palm. Kuroo uncurls his fingers and lets the objects fall into Daichi's hand.

Two giant, pink gum balls.

"You've got to be kidding me." Daichi says.

"I saw your face back then, when I just got on the elevator. I bet you were thinking that people our age shouldn't be chewing bubble gum. Well let me tell you, Sawamura, the unspoken societal dictation between what's proper for your age and what isn't is completely of our own making! We shouldn't let that hold us back." Kuroo plucks a gum ball from Daichi's grasp, tears open the packaging and removes the gum ball, spitting out his old gum into the wrapper and folding it up before tucking it away into a small pocket on his backpack. He rolls the gum ball around in his palm and grins at Daichi.

Daichi is starting to think that Kuroo has realized the effect his smile has, because Daichi really can't bring himself to say no whenever Kuroo smiles at him with all the radiance of the sun. He looks down at the pink gum ball in his hand, briefly considering how ridiculous this situation is before ripping the plastic packaging open and popping the gum ball into his mouth. He hasn't eaten anything bubblegum flavoured in well over a decade, probably, and the sickly sweetness that spreads through his mouth coats his tongue in a way that makes Daichi grimace.

"This is gross."

"Do it for the experience." Kuroo says, putting his own gum ball in his mouth. He starts to chew, laying himself back down onto the floor, eyes peering up at Daichi as he pats the space beside him. With a roll of his eyes, Daichi follows suit. It's absolutely ridiculous, really, two grown men lying on an elevator floor, chewing bubble gum side by side at 5 in the morning. Daichi would never have thought that he'd be here, doing something so unbelievable.

And yet, here he was.

Without thinking, Daichi puckers his lips and blows a large, pink bubble. It snaps against his mouth and he licks it off his lips absentmindedly.

"That's the spirit." Kuroo says softly, and Daichi can hear the traces of a smile in his voice.

There's the trace of Kuroo's smile and the sound of Kuroo's breathing beside him, and Daichi closes his eyes, zoning in on Kuroo's presence. Except there's something else too, another melodious sound accompanied by a beating rhythm, and when Daichi turns his head he realizes that it's the sound of music still playing from Kuroo's headphones.

"You said you played in a band, right?"

"Yup, that's right." Kuroo says. "Drummer."

"Do you have any of your songs on your iPod?" Daichi asks, and when Kuroo turns to look at him his eyes are wide.

"You want to listen?"

"If you have them."

Kuroo smiles then, unabashed and toothy and absolutely beautiful, his eyes are crinkling at the corners and he's got dimples in his cheeks and Daichi damn near loses his breath. He takes his iPod out of his pocket, clicks through it before removing his headphones and leans over Daichi to settle them gently around Daichi's ears. The sound of an acoustic guitar starts, the drum beat is soft yet firm, accompanied by soulful vocals and honestly, Daichi has never been much of a music person up until that very moment. It's not so much the music as it is Kuroo's face as he listens, and he thinks that if listening to his music prompts Kuroo to make that face he might never want to stop. Daichi closes his eyes, lets himself be drawn in.

"What's step three?" Daichi asks, voice soft.

"Hmmm," Kuroo drawls, thinking. He lies back down next to Daichi and tucks his arm under his head. "Step three is homework."

"What homework?"

"Your homework is to think of one thing that you've wanted to do, but didn't because you were too busy thinking about the consequences." Kuroo says with a grin. "I mean, I know it's difficult to do stuck in an elevator, so that's why it's homework-"

Daichi doesn't allow himself to think.

He sits up, leans over and kisses Kuroo like he's wanted to do since the very first moment he laid eyes on him, hands pressed firm to the ground on either side of Kuroo's head. Underneath him, Kuroo freezes for a split second and Daichi almost thinks that this is all a huge mistake, but then his lips are moulding under Daichi's touch and his hand reaches up to wrap around the nape of Daichi's neck and _oh_.

It feels so good, so _right_ , the way Kuroo's lips part without Daichi even prompting them to and the way he responds as Daichi licks into his mouth, a small moan forming on his tongue that Daichi swallows hungrily. It's a dizzying moment, and in the end Daichi has to pull back because his hands start to tremble underneath him. Neither of them speak for several moments.

"Damnit, Sawamura." Kuroo breathes. He's looking up at the ceiling, eyes wide as if he can't really believe what just happened, and because Daichi is perhaps just a little dense, he fumbles with the only eloquent response that comes to mind.

"What?"

Kuroo looks over incredulously, but disbelief melts into a look of fondness and he shakes his head with a laugh. "Nothing. Do that again."

Daichi flushes, looks away with a grumble. "Why don't you try it this time?"

A wry grin slips its way onto Kuroo's face, and though this smile is different from the one that leaves Daichi a little breathless he finds that it still manages to make him warm in the chest. Kuroo sits up, places his hand once again steady on the back of Daichi's neck and presses their lips together. As he kisses back, Daichi is thinking about how he got to be here, in this moment, in this very spot with Kuroo's breath hot against his skin. As he tangles a hand in Kuroo's ridiculous hair, he's thinking about the word _stability_ and how Kuroo is exactly the opposite in every sense of the word, bringing dissonance into Daichi's world in the form of a broken elevator and cheap bubblegum flavouring.

If Daichi is foundation, then Kuroo is the earthquake that brings it all down.

Although, maybe it isn't quite fair considering how willingly Daichi drops to his knees.

Suddenly, Kuroo pulls back, an unidentifiable expression on his face that Daichi raises a brow at.

''Sawamura," Kuroo says slowly, eyes shifting between Daichi and the floor nervously. "Can I have your number?"

There are any number of suitable reactions to Kuroo's question, really, like saying _yes_ or maybe even _no_ , if there's any possibility at all that Daichi wouldn't want to see Kuroo again after today.

(There isn't. Not even the tiniest chance.)

Instead of _any_ of those choices, Daichi is laughing.

Because he's thinking that there are really no words to describe Kuroo, or maybe there are too many words and it leaves Daichi at a loss for which to use. It's all so damn endearing that Daichi is almost frustrated with how fast he's fallen. Kuroo is looking slightly affronted sitting there in front of Daichi so before he gets the wrong idea of why Daichi is laughing, Daichi reaches over to his bag and pulls out a pen, prints his number cleanly on Kuroo's arm with a steady hand.

"You shouldn't laugh after someone asks for your number, you know." Kuroo pouts, crossing his arms. "It's hurtful."

Daichi leans in, kisses the frown off Kuroo's face. "Sorry. I just never had someone suddenly ask me for my number so soon after having their tongue in my mouth."

"Well, what can I say?" Kuroo grins, brings his shoulders up into a lazy shrug. "That's my charm."

\---

The elevator starts with a jolt and Daichi wakes immediately, looking around their small space in wide-eyed panic. He can feel them descending and turns to shake Kuroo awake, curled up sleeping next to him. Kuroo opens an eye and sits up as soon as he realizes that they're moving. The elevator descends and finally, after 8 hours, reaches the main floor. They both hold their breath as the doors slide open.

"Sawamura?"

The first person Daichi sees as the doors open is Ukai, the head of his department. There's a crowd of people behind him, trying to peek into the elevator.

"Hi, Ukai-san." Daichi greets wearily.

"Don't tell me you were stuck in there all night." Ukai is blinking at him, stunned, and Daichi thinks that they all know what the answer to that question is just from looking at the state that the two of them are in. Dark bags under their eyes, stubble on their chins and hunched backs from sleeping on the hard floor all night, he could only imagine what he looked like right now.

"Yea." Daichi chuckles, standing to gather his suit jacket and briefcase. "Sorry, is it alright if I take the day off?"

Ukai nods, clapping a warm hand over Daichi's shoulder. "Of course. No offence, but you look awful."

"As one should after staying in an elevator for 8 hours." Daichi says, rubbing his eyes, and Ukai gives him a hearty laugh before patting his back.

"Go home, Sawamura. Get some sleep on an actual bed. We'll have to write an incident report when you get in tomorrow, so come see me alright?"

"Thanks, sir."

As Daichi steps off to the side rolling his shoulders, he turns to see Kuroo talking with Bokuto who's doubled over in laughter, presumably finding some sort of humour in the situation. Kuroo shakes Bokuto off with a grimace, catches Daichi's eye and shoots him a tired smile before waving goodbye to Bokuto. He walks over to Daichi and there's a sense of finality in the air, which doesn't make much sense at all but he knows that Kuroo feels it too through the look on his face as he comes to a stop in front of Daichi.

"So this is goodbye, huh?" Kuroo says with a small smile.

Daichi resists the urge to pull Kuroo against him and kiss him as he had hours earlier. Instead, he responds with a roll of his eyes. "Thankfully."

"So hurtful, Sawamura."

"Well, you can text me and we'll see whether it's goodbye for real." Daichi says, knowing fully well that there isn't a chance that it is.

They walk out the main doors together, going their separate ways. 20 minutes later, Daichi steps into his apartment and throws his stuff on the counter before heading directly for his bed. He changes quickly into worn out sweats and a soft t-shirt, climbs into bed trying to ignore the dull ache all over his body.

In the haze just before he drifts off, he's thinking about how dissonance tastes against all his stability, appearing in his life in the form of one Kuroo Tetsurou.

**Author's Note:**

> Basically everything I write is self-indulgent trash. 8^)


End file.
